Former Mayer Brown partner Joseph Collins gets a new trial because the federal district court had a private conversation with a juror. Collins was convicted in July 2009 for his role in assisting owners and executives of Refco, the defunct commodities firm, in covering up the firm's financial difficulties. However, the appellate court said that the presiding judge made mistakes in handling a juror during heated jury deliberations. The judge had a private conversation with a juror who refused to deliberate over the objections of Collins' attorneys. A court reporter kept a record of the conversation and later shared it with the parties.